SynthesisFrontiers in pharmacology2026
Efficacy and safety of neurokinin-1 receptor antagonist on cough suppression: a systematic review and meta-analysis.
Synthesis in Frontiers in pharmacology, 2026. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Not yet cited in PubMed.
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The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.
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Authors and funding
5 authors.
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Abstract
Introduction: The efficacy and safety of neurokinin-1 (NK-1) receptor antagonist in adults with cough remain unclear. Our objective was to systematically assess the efficacy and safety of NK-1 receptor antagonist for cough treatment using the latest available clinical evidence. Methods: A comprehensive literature retrieval was conducted across PubMed, Embase (via Ovid), the Cochrane Central Register of Controlled Trials (CENTRAL), and the ClinicalTrials.gov registry, encompassing data from database inception through 10 March 2026. This search aimed to identify randomized controlled trials (RCTs) assessing the therapeutic utility of NK-1 receptor antagonists in cough management. The abstracts and full-text articles were screened based on predefined inclusion and exclusion criteria. Meta-analysis was performed using R software (V 4.4.2). Main outcomes included the cough visual analog scale (VAS), awake objective cough frequency, urge to cough scale, 24-h cough frequency, and cough-specific patient-reported scale. Adverse events were also pooled. Results: Five RCTs comprising a total 719 participants were included, evaluating three NK-1 receptor antagonists: aprepitant, orvepitant, and serlopitant. Compared to placebo, NK-1 receptor antagonists demonstrated significant antitussive efficacy by improving cough VAS scores (mean difference [MD] = -6.90, 95 CI (-10.90, -2.90), p < 0.0001) and cough-specific patient-reported scale (standardized mean difference [SMD] = 0.50, 95 CI (0.22, 0.78), p < 0.0001). Notably, the treatment group experienced a significant reduction in the urge to cough scale (SMD: -0.31, 95% CI (-0.40, - group (RR: 1.33, 95% CI (1.15, 1.53), p < 0.0001).No significant difference was detected at the overall effect estimates of objective cough frequency. Conclusion: NK-1 receptor antagonists provide modest improvements in patient-reported subjective cough outcomes, but show no statistically significant reduction in objective cough frequency. Given the small evidence base, clinical heterogeneity among pooled conditions, and higher incidence of mild adverse events, conclusions regarding their clinical benefit must be drawn with caution. Large-scale, high-quality clinical studies are required to confirm their efficacy and safety.
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